Revisiting Langkawi 2015 : Places to visit

We all have different agendas when we visit a place. Ours were more of to Eat, Sleep and Shop. A pinch of history lessons here and there. And something for the kids of course.

DATARAN LANG (EAGLE SQUARE)

This is where the iconic eagle statue is. We went there to have a stroll – loving the big space where the kids could run around. Nearby is the jetty and one could see the sea and boats. We spent less than an hour here. Took some photos, the kids were pretending to be eaten by the eagle. Then we left. For dinner.

UNDERWATER WORLD LANGKAWI

As an adult, I felt this was an amazing place. Perhaps I haven’t been to a more extravagant facility but this was a visit worth many times. This centre is located at Pantai Cenang, a popular beach to the south of Langkawi Island off the north western coast of Peninsular Malaysia. We love it as a family because it has a variety of species to look at which is arranged in a manner where it’s difficult to miss out on any species and also offers reasonably good Government Rate. All I had to do was flash my work pass ID!! My parents in law got senior citizen fees as well. Yeay!

If you go to their website, you can see that they also provide educational services to the public such as for practical training and research development programmes. Perhaps it can benefit those studying Zoology or anything animal related.

My son was really excited to see the penguins being fed. He was a bit disappointed though that elephants were not part of the Aquaria.

PANORAMA LANGKAWI

The best place to click is this page : Panorama Tickets – as it provides a lot of options for combo fares especially if you intend to spend the whole day here. We just opt for the SkyCab + SkyDome. The SkyDome was strange. It’s basically visuals of moving roller coaster rides trying to mess with your head and vestibular system while you sit still in the chair. Throughout the mini show I wasn’t sure whether I was genuinely impressed or feeling a bit ‘duh’.

The SkyCab ride was just like how I remembered it. That ‘hamba kerdil’ feeling as you see the majestic forest and waterfalls beneath you. Just wowwww.

The SkyBridge is now opened to public. There’s also a 6D cinema – was warned early on not advisable for pregnant mothers and elderly customers. We totally forgot to have a look at their 3D Art Museum and send a postcard from the SkyPos – that is soooo Seoul Tower.

MAHSURI TOMB

You may have heard of the curse towards Langkawi that extends to 7 generations – where the land will not prosper and wither. Well Mahsuri cast the curse.

The story begins with the beautiful Mahsuri, a maiden (or princess by some accounts) born over 200 years ago, who married the love of her life during a time of conflict with the Siamese. Her husband went off to fight in the war and her mother-in-law, jealous of her beauty, vengefully accused Mahsuri of adultery.

Mahsuri protested her innocence but the village elders tried the young girl, found her guilty and sentenced her to death by stabbing. She was tied to a stake but when she was pierced with the ceremonial dagger she bled white blood, a sign of her innocence.

With her dying breath, Mahsuri cursed the island with seven generations of bad luck. Later the Siamese conquered Kedah and invaded the island – the inhabitants of Langkawi set fire to their staple crop and poisoned their wells in order to halt the advance of the invaders. Legend has it to this day traces of burnt rice can be seen in nearby Padang Matsirat (The Field of Burnt Rice) especially after torrential downpours.

This attraction is not that big. Perhaps one of the few interesting thing is that we get to splash our faces with water from the ‘sacred well’ of mystical benefits across the decades. It ironically has a pipe attached to its walls. It was also said that the real resting place of Mahsuri is not the one decorated nicely, for fear it will be used for pemujaan purposes – instead is beneath one of the two trees planted near the area.

KOMPLEKS HAJI ISMAIL GROUP

You might want to look for Klinik Kesihatan Kuah as your landmark on WAZE. The complex would be this big white building with a hotel just next to it. This is the best shopping destination for most Malaysians. It sells all this Corelle stuff, tax free chocolates and bedding sheets. Of course this may be nothing for those who hails from overseas but for us here, this is like murah kowtt..

This is also the place for one who wish to experience homegrown products – tongkat ali coffee, oil based perfumes (minyak attar), lemongrass balms, gamat products etc..

I bought my souvenirs here – my chocolates and keychains and what not.. then of course we had a meal at the nearby food court. Which brings to my next post. A very short one on Food in Langkawi.